Saturday, January 12, 2019

Another Visit to the Vet on Saturday

It poured with rain, late last night, or rather, very early this morning.  I went to bed around 12:30 a.m., but didn't fall asleep until about 1:30 a.m.  Then, around 2:30 a.m., I woke to the sound of the rain.  It had ceased around 6:00 a.m. when I woke up, again, to feed Dancer (I went back to sleep, and slept till 10:00 a.m.).  But, it began to rain again, later.  The rain stopped just before noon.

Dancer spent most of the night cuddled next to me.  He purred but didn't meow.  He refused to eat even the tuna, last night and when I gave him fresh water in his bowl, he pawed the bowl and pushed it around, sniffed at the water, but didn't drink it.  He didn't eat the tuna I gave him at 6:00 a.m., either.  But I gave him another spoon of tuna around 10:00 a.m. and he ate a little of that.  The garden cats enjoyed the tuna Dancer had refused to eat!  And Dancer looked longingly at the dry food I gave them.

I checked my blood pressure twice in the morning; once as soon as I woke up, and again, around 11:30 a.m.  The first time, it was low (but not alarmingly so); the next time, it was a little higher, but low enough not to take the medicine (my doctor had said if it was below a certain level, I didn't need to take anything).  My sugar was a little above the higher level at fasting, so I didn't have my usual morning tea.  I checked it again at 11:30 a.m. and it had come down a bit, so I had a scrambled egg and a small glass of orange juice.

Then, a little after noon, I bundled Dancer up in his carrier and took him to the vet's.  Oh, he meowed in protest, all the way!  LOL!  Well, at least now we know that he didn't lose his ability to meow!

Apparently, he has an infection from the tooth extraction!  The vet said that, usually, if several teeth are extracted, then, they routinely administer an antibiotic.  But, with Dancer, since only one tooth was extracted, and since they are being told not to administer antibiotics as routinely due to the prevalence of antibiotics-resistant bacteria, she hadn't given him an antibiotic, automatically.  Well, it turns out that, maybe, she should have!  Because poor Dancer has red, infected gums and some streaks of white, too, which was a sign of infection, she said.  She said I did the right thing in bringing him in for a check up.

She gave him an injection of antibiotics - she said they could give him an oral antibiotic, that it was cheaper, but the injection was faster acting.  I opted for the injection, which cost $85.00.  At least, there were no other charges, such as a fee for the office visit, as it was a follow up visit.  She checked his temperature and it was normal.  She checked his weight and he has lost 1/2 lb. since his last visit, which was last week!  The vet assured me that he should feel better by Monday, but I am to bring him in, again, next Friday, as well.  She also said that it was OK to give him his dry food, as I said he is missing it.

He protested a bit on the way home, too, but not too much.  Then, as soon as I got home, I gave him a little dry food and, oh, he was a happy kitty!  He meowed once when I opened a new bag of food for him, to show his approval!  "Thank you, Mummy!"  "You are quite welcome, Dancer; enjoy!"

"Nom, nom, nom"
I rested a bit, after we came home.  I lay on the sofa in the living room and read one of my library books.  Dancer came by a couple of times for cuddles, although he didn't meow.  But, that's OK; I now know that he's probably feeling some pain and discomfort from the infection.

At 5:30 p.m., I checked my pressure, again - the numbers were good; not too low, but still below what the doctor said it should be when I should take my medicines.  I checked my sugar and it was low;  I debated whether to have my tea, but decided to eat an early dinner, instead.  Dinner was eaten at 6:00 p.m., which is practically unheard of, for me!

Today, I am grateful for:
- I was able to take Dancer to the vet for a check up
- Antibiotics to help him get over the infection
- The rain for the garden
- Phone calls from family and friends
- Being able to monitor my pressure, etc.


Saturday's to do list:
- Take Dancer to see the vet - DONE
- Dishes - Not yet

I haven't done the dishes at the time of writing this post.  I should probably go ahead and do that.

I haven't made a to do list for tomorrow.  There is plenty to do, but I might just take it easy, tomorrow, and see how I feel. 

How was your day?  What are your plans for tomorrow?

20 comments:

  1. You've had a stressful few days, Bless. Make sure you continue to take things easy and keep an eye on your blood pressure.
    It sounds as if the antibiotics will do the trick for Dancer, so I hope that by the time you read this he'll be feeling much better. X

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Jules. I am monitoring everything and taking it easy. Dancer is recovering. He is eating a bit of the dry food (I think it hurts him to eat it, but he is very suspicious of the wet food and gives it a wide berth!) But, he's eating and drinking water, so I think he's on the mend. :)

      Delete
  2. I was worried about Dancer and I'm glad to hear that he should be on the mend now with his antibiotic treatment. I always choose the injection over the oral because giving cats medicine is always a challenge. I'm happy I can afford it.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dancer is doing better; he's eating the dry food and drinking water. Not all that vocal, still, but I think he'll be OK, now.

      Delete
  3. Oh the poor kitty! He is going to hate the vet, if he doesn't already. What was in the medication that you and your daughter had to administrate after the surgery? I assumed it had antibacterial properties, but I assumed wrongly.

    I'm grateful that you are able to monitor both blood pressure and sugar and keep a watchful eye. You seem to be administering your own health care these days. I should address you as Doctor. Take it easy for the rest of this weekend.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The medication we gave him after surgery was a type of pain medication. Next time, if there is a next time, I shall insist on him getting an antibiotics shot, right away!

      Yes, I guess we are ultimately responsible for monitoring our own health and taking care of ourselves. I am taking it easy, but, in the meantime, things are piling up around me!

      Delete
  4. Poor Dancer. It's like with little children - they can't tell us what's wrong and it must be so frustrating and distressing. Anyhow, I hope he's now mending nicely.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Eloise. Yes, he's getting better. At least, he's eating and drinking. Still not being very vocal, but that's OK.

      Delete
  5. I am sorry Dancer had to go back to the vet, but it is what life with fur babies is all about.
    Glad your bp is better too!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Anne. Yes, that's what life with fur babies is all about! He's doing a bit better, now. I am, too. :)

      Delete
  6. I'm glad you are feeling better now, Bless.

    Poor Dancer. He was in pain, but couldn't tell you about it.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Nil. I know, poor Dancer. I'm glad I took him in for another check up.

      Delete
  7. I'm so glad that Dancer will soon be on the mend with his antibiotic treatment. Poor little chap, he has been having a rough time!
    I hope that you were able to get a good night's sleep and that your blood pressure and blood sugar settle down to respectable levels.
    We are having really cold nights so it helps to go down and stoke the furnace again if either of us wakes up. Meanwhile the critters and birds are happy when they can fill up with seed and peanuts when they wake up, so I try to make sure that the feeders are not left empty overnight. There were 5 squirrels around the other day! I think the word is getting out that we are the place for peanuts in the shell. I spilled a lot of black oil sunflower seeds this afternoon so there will be a party going on!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Bushlady. He meowed at me, a small, rather tentative meow, this evening and I was so happy! :D

      I was able to get a good night's sleep, last night, thank you. I woke up a couple of times, but went back to sleep, each time. I am keeping tabs and monitoring, everything, and, so far, so good. I just need to learn to drink tea without sugar, that's all!

      Oh, I can imagine the party they are having! I am sure the birds and the squirrels appreciate you feeding them, especially during the winter. It is very kind of you to do so.

      Delete
    2. I can't remember how many decades ago my mother and I gave up sugar in tea, but I do remember that for a little while, tea didn't taste good without sugar but it also didn't really taste good with sugar either. Now, I would hate to drink it with sugar!

      Delete
    3. I've been drinking some rosehip tea, which I can drink without sugar. Right now, it's not quite as enjoyable, but I'm sure I'll get used to it. :)

      Delete
  8. I'm glad your cat is on the mend now.

    I, also read some back posts of yours and am glad you got to go to the fabric store. I went quite a bit in December, since I had some projects I was working on. It was fun, since I had cut myself off for several months. (I had too many things to work on that were not getting done to buy more!). Have fun crafting! I have another project I need to work on before Sunday--never a dull moment!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Becky. I am still on a fabric "diet", but, wanted to take advantage of the sale to buy the white fabric, because I am all out of white fabric! Well, I do have bits and pieces of white fabric, leftovers, but not enough for the pillowcases I wanted to make. I'm looking forward to seeing what your project turns out to be.

      Delete
  9. Oh my Bless. I'm so glad Dancer got the attention he needed.
    You knew he was not quite right & you were correct.
    I'm so glad he got the shot of antibiotics and will feel much better soon.
    Especially now that he has his dry food again :)

    Debra

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Debra. Yes, I'm glad I got him to the vet before things got worse. He's definitely on the mend! He meowed at me this evening when I was in the kitchen and so I offered him some fresh tuna - from a newly opened can - and he ate it!

      Delete

Thank you for visiting my blog and commenting. Your comments are much appreciated. Please comment in English. Thank you.